Little soldier boys
by Jinipan
Summary: Au. When Zhao first met Prince Lu Ten he did not expect to ever call him a friend.


His first meeting with Prince Lu Ten was unusual to say the least.

He had seen the Prince approach from the corner of his eye and out of respect, Zhao had bowed stiffly at the Prince. Prince Lu Ten had smiled slightly at the action, an amused glint in his eye.

He placed a hand on Zhao's shoulder and had asked, "You're Zhao, right?" Zhao was slightly taken aback by the question, after all he was but a mere ensign, truly no better than a petty officer, but the Prince dismissed Zhao's surprised look and continued, "I'm Lu ten", the Prince said offering a hand to Zhao, "If I remember correctly, we're 3rd cousins, right?"

Despite his surprised at the Prince's comment, Zhao managed to shake the Prince's hand and offer a nod in response.

The prince was right. Although very distant, they were indeed cousins. Zhao was the great grandson of Firelord Sozin youngest sister, not that it was of importance. His distant relationship to the royal family did not give him much privileges beside a higher degree of pure blood which set him above most nobles when it came to betrothal negotiations.

Lu Ten smiled at the answer. "Of course," was all he had said before the two Lieutenants at his side whisked him away.

The whole interaction had unnerved Zhao. He could only wonder what the Prince had in mind.

* * *

Irritating. Zhao could not describe the Prince any better.

The talkative Prince was defiantly not what anyone, especially not Zhao, would have expected from a future Firelord. He was too overtly friendly, and a bit touchy, with no regard to social etiquette or personal dignity. And it grated Zhao's nerves.

The many royal portraits back at home had presented the Crown Prince's only son as a quiet and regal young man yet his seemingly permanent smiling face and playful eyes presented a different reality. Often Zhao's nose would wrinkle at the pathetic sight of the Prince laughing merrily with a common soldier, carelessly gripping the other man's bicep in a friendly manner.

Prince Lu Ten was definitely not the Prince Zhao had grown up learning to respect, he noted again as he quietly walked away.

Unfortunately for him, the Prince soon became the bane of Zhao's existence. Since their direct, and frankly, upsetting introduction, Zhao swore Prince Lu Ten had replaced his shadow. Where ever he was, the Prince was always present.

Thus moments of peace, moments away from the Prince, were rare and so he was always thankful for last minute meetings or missions. But even then the Prince sometimes appeared unexpectedly, invading Zhao's personal space. His friendly touches, pats on the back or the clasping of a shoulder, chipped away at Zhao's resolve. And he often found himself just barely managing to suppress the urge to punch, strangle or send a ball of flames the Prince's way.

* * *

In the battlefield, Prince Lu Ten, though, was an entirely different person. The friendly and carefree young man was replaced by a precise and ruthless warrior.

Such was the change that the first time Zhao had seen the prince moving through the ever growing carnage of the battlefield, he was taken back.

Lu Ten viciously charged at his targets with dao swords in hand. With every slash and swing of his swords, he left a wave of crimson flames in their wake. Zhao noted the Prince's immense skill and control as he made quick strikes of sharp and controlled flames emulate from the tips of his blades. The whole affair was, in a way, a beautiful dance of flames. Long smooth waves accented by endless patterns of short precise hits.

Zhao marveled at the sight and every time afterwards. It was moments like these, in the blazing and dangerous heat of battle, that Zhao saw Lu Ten for who he truly was –the Fire Prince, son of the Dragon of the West and the grandson of the mighty Firelord Azulon.

And as Zhao took another look at the immense carnage the Prince left behind, there was no doubt in his mind Lu ten would be a great Firelord and Zhao would willingly follow him to his grave.

But despite his breathtaking battle prowess, Zhao quietly knew the Prince preferred the drunken and merry celebrations at camp over the battlefield.

It was there, that he happily drank tea and careless enjoyed himself with the other soldiers. And only there, did his eyes truly shine as he sat at the campfire surrounded by soldiers, telling old folk stories and reciting old Fire Nation sonnets with great enthusiasm.

* * *

Due to his initial hostility, he was quite surprised when Lu Ten and he eventually fell into a peaceful rhythm, a sort of mutual understanding.

At the time Zhao had outright refused to call it friendship. But Lu ten had merely smiled widely at the outburst before laughing at Zhao's expense.

Although Zhao had fumed, to some extent Lu Ten's knowing smile had said it all. The Prince had –despite Zhao's continual protests and fruitless efforts – become a permanent, if not welcomed, presence in his life.

Whether they were at camp or on the battlefield, Zhao had become accustomed to Lu Ten and his weird mannerisms. He now noticeably relaxed while in the Prince's presence and had subconsciously learned to spot and follow Lu Ten in raging battles.

And as their relationship flourished, Zhao quickly learned Lu Ten's life revolved around four things: Tea, Swords, his Father and his kid cousin, Prince Zuko.

Out of the many things Lu Ten endlessly rambled about Prince Zuko was a particularly favorite topic in Lu Ten's conversations. He simply enjoyed sharing stories of his younger cousin's antics.

Lu ten would sometimes sit by Zhao during his watch duty or spend time in his tent reading him the various letters he received from the young prince. It was clear from the laughter in his voice and the affection glowing in his eyes as he read these letters, that Lu Ten was very fond of the boy, thinking of him as a younger brother.

Therefore it was only natural that the boy's well being was a great concern. Thus, it was no surprise Zhao often also got to hear about the many misfortunes that fell on the young Prince.

And while Lu Ten fumed and protested at Prince Zuko's misfortunes, Zhao couldn't help but wonder a bit about the young prince.

* * *

Zhao sat unmoving in front of a few candles. His chest rose slowly as he steadily breathed in and out. The candles' flames quivered with every breath, creating shadows that danced on the tent wall behind him.

To his left Zhao heard the tent flap softly rustle and without opening his eyes, he knew Lu Ten had slipped in and taken a place on his unrolled bedroll like usual. Zhao took one last deep breath before he turned to face him, knowing he would not be able to continue with Lu Ten there.

Lu Ten was sitting cross legged, staring at the floor. He had a frustrated expression on his face, creases formed on his forehead as he furrowed his brows.

Zhao waited patiently, knowing his friend would crack sooner than later.

After few more minutes Lu ten finally looked him in the eye, "I received another letter from Zuko", he began, "Zuko's upset- things haven't been going well with his dad."

Zhao said nothing as he reached to his side, picking up his helmet and slowly polishing it with an old cloth as he continued to listen.

"Apparently-" Lu ten grumbled, voice dripping with sarcasm, "- it isn't proper for a Fire Prince such as himself to wield swords, the lowly weapons of non-bending commoners. And so he has taken all his swords away, and forbidden him to continue practicing or even think of looking at one."

"As expected," Zhao replied without looking up.

Lu Ten frowned deeply at the response. "It's criminal. Zuko has talent. Although he hasn't had much training, he has decent control and mobility. Its raw talent just waiting."

"Well," Zhao began, "didn't you admit he was a shit fire bender?" Lu Ten winced slightly at Zhao's particular wording. It was not how he had initially phrased it to Zhao, but Zhao ignored him. "His father wants what's best. As a fire prince he should stop wasting his time on lowly weapons and work on his fire bending," he said, stopping to observe his helmet under the candlelight.

"It's what's expected of him."

Lu ten gave him a surprised look but then sighed and laid back on the bedroll. He held a hand up and watched the shadows it cast in the dim candle light. They flickered softly against the tent wall.

"Sometimes, I feel you should have been an earth bender. You're just as stubborn and stiff as the boulders they move."

Zhao turned to Lu Ten and raised an eyebrow as he gave him an unimpressed look.

Without looking Lu Ten seemed to have gotten the message and turned towards him, tucking his hands under his head as he laid on his side.

"Okay, yeah," he said, "I know, But still it's wrong. Screw Honor and so called 'proper' etiquette. All they do is stab at you - those stupid senseless things."

"Well Prince Lu Ten," Zhao said with mock politeness, "with those manners its quiet obvious you have been educated like a lowly water peasant. What a threat to polite society you are. It must be oh so hard for you with all those fire nation beauties chasing after you. What a rugged bad boy."

Lu Ten stared at him and Zhao returned a deadpan look.

"I'm serious Zhao. Remember we are talking about Zuko here."

Zhao sighed, "Look, he's a fire prince. Sooner or later he will have to grow up and learn to submit to those expectations. I understand you're upset, after all swords are your thing, but who can guarantee Prince Zuko will ever fight like you?"

"That's the point," Lu Ten huffed, "he won't – not if he doesn't practice, not if he's not encouraged. He needs those swords!"

Zhao frowned. "Back to this again," he grumbled. "Look if you want to keep being stubborn go ahead but it doesn't change anything. You still fail to see the point. Prince Zuko is a Fire Prince. He has a duty to fulfill, a duty to his nation, and in the end those things don't change - regardless of your beliefs."

Lu Ten sat up at that. His shoulders slumped and for once he looked utterly defeated.

"I just wish my uncle weren't so harsh on Zuko," he whispered, "I wish I could be there to help him, you know? Maybe the others don't see it but I know how strongly that honor and etiquette code bullshit is to him. But I also know how suffocating it must be for him – especially when my uncle takes it to the extreme."

Zhao looked at him silently for a moment. For the first time in a long while he didn't know what to say. But what could he say with Lu Ten's obvious distress? So he opted to let the moment sink in instead.

They sat still in the prolonged silence, Lu Ten staring at the floor and Zhao at him.

Their silence was suddenly interrupted by the rustling of the tent flat as a soldier peeked in. "My apologies Prince Lu Ten," he began, "General Iroh is asking for you."

"Tell him I'm on my way," Lu Ten said without looking up. The soldier nodded and left.

Zhao saw Lu Ten take a breath. "So" – Lu Ten huffed as he stood up and gathered himself – "duty calls."

Zhao stiffly nodded. He turned back to his candles as Lu Ten stepped out and walked away.

* * *

Years later Zhao would be haunted by his last conversation with Lu Ten as he saw Lu Ten's kid cousin, Prince Zuko, screaming and writhing pain after Firelord Ozai burned his face.


End file.
